Lun Wenxu and Liu Xiankai were sworn brothers in history.
Liu Xiankai, a figure in folklore. According to legend, he was from Huguang (now Hubei) in the Ming Dynasty. The legendary story of Liu Xiankai and Lun Wenxu is still amazing, and it was adapted into the movie "Lun Wenxu's Oldest Point, Liu Xiankai".
Lun Wenxu, a talented man, went to Beijing to take the exam. When he met Liu Xiankai, who was proud of his talent, he declared that he would win the first prize and repeatedly humiliated Lun Wenxu, who was a vegetable seller. As a result, Lun Wenxu won the top prize in high school. Liu Xiankai was ranked second. The latter two ignored their past grudges, cherished each other, and became sworn brothers.
Extended information:
The couplets created by Lun Wenxu first have strong Lingnan cultural characteristics and are rooted in the life circle of Guangfu culture. For example: The rude scholar bent his knees to reveal Zhou Jian Er, and the sentimental college lowered his head to see Ancestor III. The wooden horse has no head and three legs, and the dragon has eyes on half of its body. "燇见" and "三者" are characteristic words in Cantonese, which mean "see" and "三者".
Lun Wenxu was a talented man who did not belittle himself. It can be seen from the art of couplets that he did not underestimate the origin of his culture. Guangdong was known as the land of southern barbarians in ancient times. As the first person in Guangdong Lun Wenxu, the top scholar, tried to rectify this bias. Facts speak louder than words. Guangdong does have cultural value, otherwise this characteristic would not be preserved to this day.
The second is the implicit irony, such as: the butterflies blooming at the bottom of the well are hard to pick up after smelling the fragrance, and the old monkey wants to eat the fruit painted on the white wall in vain. The couplet is quite ironic, yet easy to understand.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Lun Wenxu
Baidu Encyclopedia-Liu Xiankai